Driver Dies After Crashing Through Garage, Going Down Embankment
SAUGUS (CBS) -- First responders in Saugus were called to Hammersmith Drive Sunday afternoon after a car reportedly crashed through a garage and went down an embankment. The driver of the car was rushed to a local hospital but later died, police said.
The driver was identified as Steven Rauseo, age 74, of Saugus.
The car was headed down a steep driveway when it went through the home's basement garage and tumbled 40 feet into an embankment before landing upside down.
Neighbors described the hectic scene to WBZ-TV. "They had to get him out of the car, they put him on a stretcher, and they were pulling him up with ropes, up a cliff, through the snow," said Peter Gardiner. "They kept on falling down but they were just frantically getting this gentleman up into the backyard."
State Police are investigating after a truck crashed through a basement garage and tumbled down a cliff in #Saugus. We're told the driver died at the hospital. @WBZ pic.twitter.com/KkU2gsDMZ2
— Tiffany Chan (@TiffanyChanWBZ) January 20, 2019
The driver was the only person involved in the 1:30 p.m. crash, according to police.
"For this to happen to that family, you know, in a second, I'm sure it happened in a matter of seconds, so it puts things in perspective," said Gardiner.
The cause of the crash is under investigation. The Mass. State Police Collision Analysis and Reconstruction Section is assisting.
The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection was also called for a report of an oil leak.